Religion was deeply linked to the culture of the ancient Greeks. In their stories, they prayed to the gods to meet their needs and offer aid in their endeavors, and the gods sometimes seemed to select Greeks to give them advice, gifts, or other forms of assistance. Alternatively, if the desires or efforts of one or more mortals displeased one or more gods, they would also interfere with the achievement of their goals. In Homer's Odyssey, the gods appear or interfere with Telemachus and Odysseus, either to help them or to hinder them on their journeys. Although the gods are responsible for the difficulties Odysseus encountered in returning from Troy, they are also responsible for motivating and assisting Odysseus and Telemachus on their respective journeys. Without divine intervention, neither Odysseus nor Telemachus would have any journeys to undertake. The gods are primarily responsible for establishing the conditions in which history begins. While the Greek soldiers had returned from Troy, Odysseus remained trapped while "the brightest goddess, Calypso, held him in her hollow caves" because "she wanted him as a husband" (Homer, Odyssey 1.5, translation of Allen Mandelbaum). Calypso traps Odysseus on his island of Ogygia and "keeps sad Odysseus there, although he cries." His words are loving and fragrant, sweet and gentle – then she would cherish him to cast away her Ithaca” (1.7). He remained in Ogygia for years, leaving the care of his house to his wife Penelope and his son Telemachus. Because Calypso keeps him away for years, Odysseus is presumed dead and his absence invites suitors to his home. These suitors seek to win the hand of Penelope, the wife of Odysseus. This state of affairs is the overall cause of the death of Telemachus middle of paper ......a, escaping from Calypso and the island of Ogygia, and of Telemachus from Ithaca to Pylos and Sparta looking for his lost object. father. While The Odyssey recounts the courage both men demonstrate during their respective journeys, their quests are the result of the intentions and desires of the gods. Odysseus is trapped in exile on Ogygia by the will of Poseidon, whose anger Odysseus attracts when he blinds the cyclops Polyphemus, son of Poseidon, and by the love of Calypso, who wishes to make Odysseus her husband. He is released from Ogygia and allowed to return to Ithaca only by order of Zeus, as delivered by Hermes. Telemachus, rather than being physically trapped, was emotionally detained, feeling powerless to fend off the suitors courting Penelope. It was only thanks to the motivation of the goddess Athena that Telemachus found the will and courage to set out in search of Odysseus...